MOST READ IN HEALTH

MIND OVER MATTER

What are the symptoms of anxiety, how can it be treated and who else suffers? From Zayn Malik to Will Young

Warning

BLEACH HORROR

Mum who tried to dye her hair 'unicorn' colours is now BALD after £5 bleach left her with severe scalp burns

Home remedies

What causes mouth ulcers and how to treat them with stuff you have at home

Exclusive

'you really are never too young'

Fit and healthy mum battles bowel cancer at just 35 – and urges YOU to check for the warning signs

ITCH YOU CAN'T SCRATCH

From STIs to chafing, what your itchy testicles REALLY mean (and when you should be worried)

FAT PILL TO SWALLOW

Taking just one pill 'could help you shed two stone' thanks to BALLOON that makes you feel full

But the number of full-time GPs fell by 445 in the three months to the end of December.

Dr Richard Vautrey, deputy chair of the British Medical Association’s GP committee, said: “The crisis in general practice is now impacting patients right across the country.

“Despite repeated and clear warnings, a decade of underinvestment and failure by successive governments to take the growing workload and workforce crisis seriously has led to this situation.”

And Professor Helen Stokes-Lampard, chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: “Unfortunately, too many practices are being forced to close because GPs and their teams can no longer cope with ever-growing patient demand without the necessary funding and workforce to deal with it.

NHS England said patients wanting to register at a practice “are guaranteed to be able to do so”. And it said it had increased investment by £1billion in two years “in order to improve services and boost GP numbers”.

Lib Dem health spokesman Norman Lamb said the NHS is “hurtling towards catastrophe” and needs an “urgent injection of cash”.

Meanwhile, leaked Government documents reveal Brexit could leave the NHS short of up to 42,000 nurses by 2026.